Monday, November 14, 2011

French retail giant Carrefour is opening up its first departmental store in Karachi tomorrow. The French giant is the world’s second largest retailer after Walmart which opened its first Pakistani store in Lahore in 2009. The store will be part of the Hyperstar brand which is used by the company in several locations around the world. The French giant’s presence in Pakistan is part of its joint venture with Dubai-based Emirati conglomerate Abdul Majid al-Futtaim Group.

Spread over 100,000 plus square feet in Dolmen Mall Clifton, the hypermarket – a bigger version of supermarket – will have the capacity to display 30,000 products will operate at a scale previously unheard of in Pakistan. With its state-of-the-art receiving yard and 35 exit cash counters, Hyperstar has much larger capacity than existing competitors including Makro and Metro Cash & Carry.

Hyperstar's second hypermarket in Karachi is under construction at Lucky One Mall near UBL Sports Complex – the site previously housed the now defunct Fazal Mill. Company has identified three more locations in the City of Karachi. The company also wants to open at least three more stores in Lahore. The Clifton location can accommodate 3,000 cars and a higher number of motorcycles (for the entire mall). It has a selling area spread over 65,000 square feet while its warehouse is spread over 20,000 square feet giving them leverage for piling up stocks and putting a huge number of goods on display.